愛学園 Ai Gakuen
by primrose panda
Summary: Haruno Sakura - meet Konoha Gakuen. Konoha Gakuen - meet your newest source of excitement. Things will get a little heated up in here. HIATUS
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, gomenasai.**

**Summary: Konoha Gakuen was a normal high school – it had cliques, fights, and the normal teachers. Haruno Sakura is new however and is blissfully unaware of the workings of this strange school. It supposed to be like any other, right? Then why are all these guys suddenly falling for the same new girl?! Who will win her guarded heart of ice and who will be left, drowned in their hearts' despair?**

* * *

I was walking down the road that led to my house with my friends following, there was supposed to be some big get together today with the whole gang. Sasori and Deidara had some art exhibit at school and couldn't make it until later. Itachi had Student Council to worry about and Pein was too busy worrying over one of his little brothers, Nagato, to come over early.

So basically it was just me, Tobi, Kisame, Hidan, and Madara. The boys – a.k.a. Tobi, Kisame, and Hidan – were being stupid. Hidan and Kisame were playing 'Monkey-in-the-middle' with Tobi's mask. Madara was busy listening to his iPod on full blast and I was busy thinking of ways to successfully get rid of those stupid sophomores who think they're Kings and Queens of the world just because they're in that goddamn Honors class – it's just a frikkin' class for the people who like to think that the world revolves around them and their little posse.

We were still on the way to my house when Sasori and Deidara came running up. There was a happy grin on Deidara's face and Sasori's eyes held a triumphant glaze in them; it was obvious the exhibit went well. If they have three more that go well enough they can get into Konoha University with an art major. Madara still had his iPod on when they came running up, he said a simple "Congratulations" in that silky smooth voice of his, its baritone sound sent tremors down my spine…in a good way.

"Thanks, I really hope I get into Konoha U. it would suck if I didn't. All of my hard work would've been wasted. Deidara would probably sulk for a year straight if that happened, I don't think we could handle that." Sasori said, slowing to a walk next to me and Madara.

I was still contemplating the chances of me getting into Kurokami University. I really wanted to become a stylist, or a fashion designer, or even a cosmetologist. I need something to do with beauty, maybe I'll take more than one college course and become a professional in all of them. It would take about eight to thirteen years for me to complete all of the courses though, even if I get through university.

I've wanted to be a stylist since I was a little girl. People always thought I was too dark, too foreboding; they also thought I hung out with all the wrong people. I don't know how many times I told them they were wrong, that my friends loved me and treasured me. It was true, but that's not the point. I wanted to add some of my own style to the fashion world; it's becoming corrupt in the ways of the preps. There were too many bright colors, so few stores with clothes and designs that I liked and approved of. I want that to change, the people in charge of the fashion community are too focused on one style, not all people want to look like that, dress like that, act like that.

I was brought back to earth by a hand waving in front of my face. "Konan… Konan, Earth to Konan!" I blinked at the hand for a moment and my bewildered stare turned into an icy glare as I trailed my eyes slowly from the hand, to the arm, up the neck, and my murderous glare reached the hesitant and frightened face of Hidan. My glare turned into a happy gaze as I asked what was wrong and why we had stopped walking. "Well, you were kind of spacing out there," he started, "and we were kinda suspicious because you almost walked into a pole. You sure you're okay?" I smiled at him and nodded. "I'm fine, I'm fine. Don't be such a pansy-ass." I started walking again and after a couple of seconds so did the others.

I turned and walked backwards - somehow Madara had kept pace with me the whole time - and looked at the rest of my friends. Deidara was screaming at Hidan, who had stoned his face into a mask of indifference but was still on alert; he was a paranoid man…well who wouldn't be with a past like his? Any who, Deidara was screaming his ass off about how only Madara, Pein, Itachi, and Hidan can make me happy or calm after I became angry and Hidan continued to ignore him with a slight smirk on his face.

Tobi was busy trying not to step on every crack he saw while keeping away from Kisame at the same time. Apparently, Tobi had killed Kisame's pet goldfish and he had just found out about it – Sasori had given Tobi away, asking where he buried the goldfish after its 'funeral ceremony'.

Sasori was talking on his cell phone, probably with his girlfriend, she was a nice girl and very easy to get along with. She also didn't like the little sophomores and was a senior at the school while we were juniors.

Madara was still listening to his iPod with his eyes closed as he mouthed the words to the song that was playing. I studied his beautiful face with fascination; his lips were plump and pale pink and moved with every word of the song. His nose was straight and aristocratic – a trait for the truest of Uchihas'. High cheekbones and sharp onyx eyes that weren't open but I've memorized his face enough to know that his eyes weren't just black and endless, but held tints of gray in them – that was the profile of the perfect man. His inky black hair spiked wildly in the back and his bangs fell over his right eye and framed his face – ending at his collarbones.

He must've felt me staring because he opened his left eye and smiled at me and I tentatively smiled back, the corners of my mouth lifting ever so slightly. After a couple of seconds of staring at each other I turned to face the front, a tinge of pink dusting my cheeks and over the bridge of my nose. He wouldn't know, he won't figure it out, I'm sure of it. No one but Pein and Hidan needs to be aware of my love for Uchiha Madara, because it's not right. He's perfect and amazing – he's smart, athletic, graceful, and polite and everything I'm not. He shouldn't love me, he can't, he'd be in love with something lower than him and I want to see if I can try to reach his level before ever thinking about being with him.

After walking for twenty minutes we had made it to my house, it wasn't small and wasn't big. It was a normal two story house - Pein, Yahiko, Nagato, and I live here. Pein's parents had abandoned him long ago with his two younger brothers to fend for themselves. Pein was twelve when that happened, and I had been friends with him for nine years. My parents knew him very well and were friends of the family, and were ashamed of what they had done. They took Pein in and raised him and Yahiko and Nagato, my parents had passed away four years later – leaving me everything when I turned sixteen.

My home was a simple two story white house with a large pear tree to the left of the house. In the driveway were two cars, a black Mercedes and a silver 2009 BMW M3 Coupe-Cabrio – both of which were built for speed, it's something Pein and I love. We walked into the house and noticed the large, white envelope sitting on the table in the kitchen.

I walked up to the table and gently picked up the off-white envelope. Written on it was the school's insignia and it was addressed to me and Pein. It was odd since we've never really received a letter from the school before. The boys walked in and sat at the couch where Pein was sitting, right hand holding the remote control, left resting on the back of the couch and feet on the glass coffee table in front of the couch and TV.

I opened the letter, unaware of Madara's eyes on me the entire time, and pulled out the manila colored paper – the top was covered in vines and diamonds. Proof that this was from Tsunade-sama – our principal and my godmother – and that this must've been very important. I walked into the living room and sat down on the loveseat by myself, I didn't really notice the look Pein sent Madara but I bet if I did I'd be blushing by now.

_**Dearest Konan,**_

_I hope you are having a good school year so far and everything is to your liking. Tell the boys I said hi as well before I start saying anything important._

_I've received news recently about a girl who is supposed to be moving here by herself. Her mother committed suicide and the father just recently got out of jail, the step-mother was the father's mistress and was the reason for the girl's parents' divorce and the mother's suicide. The birth mother tried to kill the girl with her while she was going to commit suicide but instead killed her twin brother and had the girl watch._

_This girl is my grand-daughter and is very precious to me, I wish for you to watch over her when she gets here. She will be living close to you anyway, she's a very nice girl and if you mention my name she'll know you're not an enemy. I warn you though, she's very violent and very quiet, but do not, under any circumstances, make her angry. She can literally punch a crater in the ground with her fist alone and has taken many martial arts and weaponry classes, and all the sports she's been in add on to her strength._

_She's also been bullied since she was little; she wasn't able to use her martial arts abilities because if we were to let her loose, at that age, she would be a threat to national security. She's pretty scary when she wants to be, and if she smiles for you at all then that is a sign that she trusts you – cherish that because after that single one it'll probably be awhile before you get another, trust me._

_She'll arrive on the 5__th__ of Jun, by the time you get this letter it should be the next day that she arrives – that should give you enough time beforehand to do anything you need to before she arrives. Don't force the boys on her, invite them but tell Deidara, Kisame, Deidara, Tobi, and Hidan to behave. I know Sasori, Itachi, Pein, and Madara can handle their emotions and not cause problems._

_Ganbatteru!_

_**Ja Ne Konan-chan!**_

_**~Tsunade**_

It was really sad to hear something like that had happened to a defenseless child at that age, it must be torture for the poor girl, and I wonder how she's taking it. I felt stares directed at me and I turned slowly to look at the guys across from me, Deidara and Tobi were bouncing up and down in their seats looking at me like I was about to give them a present. Madara looked at me expectantly and smiled a little, making by breath hitch. Pein looked like he didn't care – like always.

I handed them the letter, too lazy to explain it to them and walked into the kitchen to find something to eat. I was always hungry after school, stupid Council meetings – the upperclassmen were elected each year to be the representatives for their school for any festivities or activities any school took part in. I was one of them, damn you Deidara.

I jumped onto the counter, my legs dangling uselessly, and took a look around my kitchen. There was no wall separating the kitchen from the living room and from here I could see the boys on the floor and Madara and Pein sitting on the couch still, they haven't moved an inch since I handed them the letter.

The walls in the kitchen were painted a dark navy blue with white window curtains hanging from above the back door – which was a sliding window-door-thing – and from above the large window in the living room that was behind our large plasma TV. The island counter I was sitting on took up the middle of the kitchen and was quite large, the countertop itself was an ivory marble and the cabinets had chrome finishing. The sink, dishwasher, and stove were attached to the island counter and were complete with the latest – a.k.a. shiniest – kitchen utensils we could afford.

I looked down at my outfit then as well, I was wearing a pair of baggy black sweatpants with the word 'Fight' on the left leg in baby blue calligraphy and a white T-shirt with a lighter blue lace tank-top underneath. My fuzzy dark blue slippers stayed on the floor directly under my feet while my flip-flops sat on the wooden floor in front of the front door.

I finished my smoothie and put the cup in the sink, washing it and putting it on the rack to dry. I walked back into the living room and sprawled out on the only loveseat available. Tobi, Deidara, and Kisame were busy doing something I was too lazy to stick my nose in and Madara had finally taken his iPod out of his ears to watch TV with Pein. I think they were watching my recording of _Leverage_, I wasn't totally sure.

Within a few minutes I guess I fell asleep, I didn't notice that's for sure but I felt like I was being lifted…

_**~***~**_

I silently watched as she fell asleep, no one but Pein and Itachi knew. Itachi had figured it out long ago, he is my cousin after all. Pein had also figured it out; how the both of them had done it, I had no idea. Getting back to the subject that was in my line of vision, I discreetly watched her out of the corner of my eyes. I drank in the sight of her so defenseless, like a little girl. She always kept up her guard when she was fully conscious, always so quiet and serious to the point where it was overly hard to see what she was thinking. I can usually read people very well, hell I could figure out what anyone in the Uchiha clan was thinking…except for Itachi.

Her sapphire colored hair escaped her bun long ago, preferring to wear it down inside of her home. A perfectly straightened lock of hair fell in her face as she turned in her sleep; my fingers tingled, wanting to feel the silk-like texture of her hair. Eyelids tinted a violet color hid piercing ice blue eyes from my sight, those eyes sent chills down my spine every time I gazed into them.

Her baggy sweatpants and plain T-shirt somehow only emphasized her beauty in my eyes. Her persistent ways and ability to control people amazed me and made me love her so much more.

I noticed that she was about to fall off the couch and I got up. "What're you doing Madara?" Pein had asked as I walked over to the sleeping female on the couch. "I'm taking her to her room," I started. "She's falling off the couch. Cancel the get-together today. Everyone's tired, and we just finished our mid-terms for the semester." Pein nodded and a whining sound came from the blond in front of the TV, he was looking forward to the beer pong tournament. Tobi would've thrown a fit…if he was paying attention to anything but the commercial about the Color Blend© markers.

Kisame was sleeping too, but he was on the floor and drooling. Nobody really cared for moving him, even if he got in the way.

I picked her up and I noticed her eyes flutter; she was so beautiful I could hardly stand it. I had always wanted to hold her like this – it made me unbelievably happy to finally have the chance to do it.

Pein watched me through the corners of his eyes, I knew he didn't like Konan – she was just like a sister to him. I ascended up the stairs with her light body in my arms; she was so light it was hard to believe she was a seventeen year old. I navigated my way through the upstairs hallway to her bedroom, one I visited frequently with the amount of times I've been in this house. It was quite odd being in here without her being awake. It made me wonder if there was anything here I could find out about her before she wakes up, but I won't do that – after all I was raised to be the perfect gentleman.

I set her down on her queen sized bed and took a look around her room. The walls were a simple ivory white, and the door was painted silver with blue and green glitter – her name was written in icy blue calligraphy on her door. To me, it seemed as if she had an odd obsession with calligraphy, anything blue, and origami. Her bed was covered in silky baby blue sheets, a darker blue comforter with a design of an off-white oriental flower, and a pair of midnight black pillows with bright fluorescent moons and stars on them. She had a dark wood floor and a fuzzy white rug with a light lavender tint to it; it went well with all of the art hanging on her walls. Konan seemed to like art in general because her walls and tables held all of the presents Sasori and Deidara had given her for her birthday or any leftover work from their art shows. Her closet door was a mint green colored shoji door with a design of off-white lily pads on it. There was a large bookshelf to the left of the closet and it held a multitude of mangos and fantasy books – Konan loved to read, whether it was for school or not, she just refused to read those girly books filled with drama and crap. Her desk was a corner desk made of black metal and chrome, its design was fairly modern and her black suede swivel chair was very comfortable – I would know I'm sitting on it. Her school bag lay harmlessly on the floor against the desk.

After my little surveillance of her bedroom I quickly exited, not wanting to give the guys the idea I was molesting Konan in her sleep… Though I wouldn't deny it's getting very difficult. She refused to lie under the covers, and her T-shirt and tank-top were hitched up to just under her breasts and I could see the flat plains of her stomach. Her sweatpants were so baggy they were falling because the tie around her waist was undone, I could very clearly see the slight V that made up the top of her pelvis. My pants were getting tighter the more a thought about it and I decided to leave the room as quickly as possible before I did something she wouldn't like – an angry Konan is something no one wants to see in their life if they like being alive.

_**~***~**_

I walked through the gates of the airport and into the baggage claim area; it was hard to believe I was back in Japan. How long has it been? Eight, ten, maybe twelve years since I've last been here, I'm pretty sure it hasn't changed at all in that time. I leaned against the wall as I watched for my luggage, it wasn't hard to miss them – I had brought all of my belongings with me and those weren't much at all. All of my things fit in a, rather large, metal trunk, a briefcase, a backpack, and a large sling bag that hung beside my leg that was made of red yarn.

Simple things were brought with me, sentimental things, and things that I loved. I saw my bags come out of the opening and dashed for it, no one noticed my speed and if they did they wisely kept their mouth shut. I stoned my face into that of an unreadable expression, it always scares people how quiet, uncaring, and slightly shy I can be – like an ever present calm.

But I don't think people look at me just because my face is stony and expressionless, I think it's because of the way I look. I've always had a preference of dark colors and my hair sort of stood out. My hair reached to the top of my thighs and was a dark pink – the color of bloody orchids – and had streaks of black running through it. My hair was parted so that the majority of my hair covered my left eye. My eyes were a forest green color and were constantly outlined by a sharp, thick line of black and silver eyeliner. My lips were covered in chapstick that smelled like mangos, and I found it odd that I've always liked the scent of fruit and flowers paired with blood.

My outfit wasn't odd at all in my opinion; in fact it was probably one of my favorite outfits. I was wearing a solid black V-neck shirt with the long sleeves pulled up to my elbows and a blood red tank-top with lace trimming underneath. My jeans were light colored and faded and torn in many spots, black, white, and silver paint stains littered the fabric and random words were written in sharpie all over my jeans. I wore a pair of faded cherry red converse with black and white checkered laces, and a black leather studded belt hung slanted around my hips over my shirt. I left my hair down and put in a pair of silver dangly star earrings in the first set of earlobe piercings, in the second I put in diamond studs, and in my left cartilage piercing I put in a simple silver hoop. On my fingers were a multitude of rings, some of them black, some of them white, and some of them silver. My favorite one, however, was the one on my left middle finger – it was a gorgeous piece of work, the band was a white gold and the gem was in the shape of a butterfly, the frame itself was made of the same white gold as the band. The gem was an amethyst and there were designs on the butterfly that were made of onyx, emerald, and sapphire – overall it was the most beautiful ring I had ever laid eyes on… and to think, it was a gift! This thing must've cost a fortune, around 500,000¥ that's a _lot_ of money, especially for someone who can't afford it – a.k.a. me.

I walked through the throng of people exiting the airport and found one of the exits; I went to look for a cab when a car suddenly drove up to the curb in front of me. I simply raised an eyebrow as the window lowered and the face of a very handsome male peered at me. I didn't say anything as the car turned off and I heard a car door open and close and a girl who looked about seventeen walked around the front of the white BMW M3 GT4. It was a tasteful car, I'll give them that.

The girl leaned against the car and scrutinized me as I did the same to her with a smirk on my face. She was actually one of the prettiest girls I've ever seen. Her hair was a sapphire blue and was kept in a bun with her bangs framing her face; an intricately made origami flower was attached to her hair above her left ear. Her eyes were ice blue and sharp but warm at the same time, they were outlined by kohl black eyeliner and her long eyelashes were dyed with ocean blue mascara.

Her body was one a model would be jealous of, she was tall and shapely – her curves were probably the cause of her being trailed by a rather large group of fan-boys most likely. Her outfit wasn't bad either; I could tell I would get along great with this girl. She was wearing a navy blue T-shirt and a pair of solid black shorts that weren't too short – she had on knee-high periwinkle and black horizontal striped socks and a pair of black close to knee high boots with metal buckles. A black, long silk ribbon was tied in a neat bow around her neck and blue glitter fishnets adorned her hands and arms as a single ring with a ruby on it sat perfectly on a long, elegant purple-painted finger.

"Hello, I'm guessing you're Haruno Sakura. Am I correct in my assumptions?" She asked, she looked trustworthy – but then again I know than to trust on looks alone. I lowered my eyebrow and looked pointedly at her. "And if I am?" I countered in the same quiet voice that my family had grown accustomed to since I was but a child; she smirked nodded, as if approving something. "I see, well if you're not I could just tell Tsunade-sama that her precious grand-daughter hasn't arrived yet…" My breath hitched just a bit and a slight smirk crawled upon my features. I acknowledged that she was well informed, not many people were aware that I had a grandmother, hell most people thought I was the last person alive in my family – she must've had a good information source.

"Who told you?" The quietness of my voice was so apparent even I couldn't hear myself… if that made any sense whatsoever. I seriously wanted to know who told her though. She turned her smirk into a smile and seemed to take notice of my discomfort; it sort of unnerved me actually. "Tsunade-sama actually notified me in a letter yesterday that I would be your guide until further notice." At this she held out her hand, altering the smirk on her face to one of a smile. "Ohayou Haruno Sakura-chan. My name is Reiame Konan; it's a pleasure to meet you."

I hesitantly took her outstretched hand in my own and shook it with a shy smile on my face. "Pleasure to meet you as well Reiame-san," was my reply. The classes my mother had sent me to were still fresh in my mind and the training I had endured since a child had still left its mark after I had strived so hard to get rid of it. The male in the car seemed oddly quiet; it was like he was studying me. I blushed slightly under his gaze but continued my way around the car to the trunk and unceremoniously dropped my luggage – I kept my sling bag on though, it wouldn't do me any good at all to lose this… in fact it would be the complete opposite.

Hesitantly stepping into the car, I immediately noticed its glamour. It looked like it was expensive outside, but the atmosphere was warm and friendly and the seats were worn and the carpet stained so lightly you almost couldn't see it. I made a tiny smile and sat it the back seat. She was going to like living here already!

**~***~**

The silent sixteen year old reached into her bag and looked through it, only to pull out a shiny purple new generation iPod seconds later, along with a book. The cover read, 'City of Bones' by Cassandra Clare. _**[[A /N: For all of you who **__**don't**__** know what books this is you should really just shoot yourself in the foot. For those of you who like reading, go and buy this book! Cassandra Clare is amazing, too bad I'm broke and have yet to buy City of Ashes and City of Glass. Damn.]] **_ Jace was obviously her favorite character and sounded totally hot, while Isabelle sounded like a complete and utter bitch but ended up turning nicer once everything was settled, Clary sounded cute and scared – like a little bunny rabbit – and Simon and Alec weren't much involved, though she could see that Simon would be a big character in the next two books.

She turned her song to 'Xin Li You Shu' by Fahrenheit. It was one her favorite songs. _**[[A / N: As it is mine! Aaron Yan is probably one of the cutest guys I have ever seen, and I've seen a ****lot**__**.]] **_Listening to it always made her happy, turning it up louder she continued reading.

_"…Have you fallen in love with the wrong person yet?" Clary asked. Jace responded, "Unfortunately, Lady of the Haven, my one true love remains myself." _

"_At least," she said, "You don't have to worry about rejection, Jace Wayland." _

"_Not necessarily, I turn myself down occasionally, just to keep it interesting…"_

She was interrupted from her musings when the car lurched to a stop in front of a simple one-story white house. Konan turned in her seat and looked at the teenager who resembled a little kid curled up in a ball in the corner of the seat with a piece of pocky in her mouth, an open book in her hands, and a pair of earphones in her ear hooked up to an iPod sitting on the seat in front of her.

"Sakura-chan, we're here. Welcome to your new home." And as the older female smiled a loving smile Sakura felt like smiling herself.


	2. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: If you're wondering whether I own Naruto yet… your fruitless efforts have not been in vain.

I may not own Naruto right now, but I have finished the next chapter of 恋仲翰林院 (Ai Gakuen).

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Sakura's been here for a week and she still hasn't started attending school yet. It was odd to the emerald eyed beauty because she would usually busy herself with school at this time of year. She had to keep up her Honors streak after all, and being behind in work was something she's rather not dwell on. She had met the other members of Akatsuki the day after she landed in from Taipei and found them to be one of the best and weirdest friends she had ever had in her life. She supposed it was because she didn't really concentrate on being peoples' friends when she was living outside of Japan.

**~***~**

The constantly loud beeping was all that was heard throughout the house as an elegant hand reached out from under the dark covers of the futon mattress on the floor of the bedroom. The pretty silver device flashed multi-colored numbers as it read the time – 5:45 am.

It really sucked sometimes, being in high school. Your school started at 7:25 in the morning and you didn't leave until 3:30 in the afternoon. And to get to school on time you had to leave at 6:30, it was quite tiresome.

Digging through her closet to find her entirely new stash of clothes, she found her 'edited' version of the school uniform she had received two days earlier. After brushing her teeth and taking a quick ten minutes shower she slipped into the uniform.

The uniform itself wasn't so bad – the blouse was a white silk button-up shirt with short sleeves and a collar, while the skirt ended at the top of her thighs and was solid black. But of course, seeing as this was Haruno Sakura we're talking about, she had to fix it up a little for it to meet her standards. She spent two days mending it and embroidering it – and in the end, it turned out pretty damn awesome in her opinion.

The back of the shirt was embroidered with a black rose and down the sides were designs of vines intertwining with cherry blossoms. The bland white plastic buttons on the shirt were replaced with black metal buttons with the design of a spiral in red on them. The solid black skirt was covered in thin miniature chains and little charms hung off of a couple of the chains.

Walking over to her vanity she sat in the chair and pulled out a bottle of mango and strawberry scented lotion, a curling iron, black and silver eyeliner, blood red lip gloss, a pair of silver chandelier earrings that had a star design on it, black and red nail polish and her nail kit, a black silk ribbon, a large amethyst pendant on a white gold chain, and a silver ring with an onyx in the shape of a rose.

Deciding to leave her elbow length bangs straight and curling the rest of her hair she got to work, finishing it within ten minutes. With twenty-five minutes left she rushed to finish in time, doing her nails and applying her make-up, putting on her jewelry and wrapping the ribbon around the invisible divide between her bangs and her freshly curled hair.

Finally finished and with five minutes left before she had to leave, she rushed through her things to find her tie, it was a black and red plaid tie that she tied loosely around her neck underneath the necklace. Walking over to her desk she picked up her cell phone, her wallet, iPod, keys to her house, and her MacAir. **[[A / N: It's the thinnest laptop ever made in case you didn't know.]]**

Stepping into her low-rise worn and faded cherry red converse and strapping her hand-made anklet on her left ankle she walked down the hallway and into the kitchen – grabbing a to-go V8 strawberry-banana smoothie she walked out the door with a bored look on her face.

Every step she took brought her closer to the place she had been dreading to go to since she arrived in Tokyo. The only reassurance she has is that Konan and the others go to the same school. Over the week that she's known them Sakura became quite close to the blue haired female and often talked to her on a daily basis. The rest of Akatsuki, as that was the name they preferred to be called, had also become relatively close to the new girl as well.

Rounding the corner Sakura came upon the large structure that she had visited days before – its size still not failing to surprise her. Still finishing her smoothie, she walked up the steps to the school, trying o ignore the looks of lust and interest aimed at her by males, and the jealously heated looks sent by females. She stopped in front of the large table set outside the entrance of Konoha Gakuen and looked at the junior that responded to her stare by sending one back.

He was quite cute in her opinion – shoulder blade length white hair, his bangs tied in the front with red ribbons and red outlining on his eyes which were a pretty close match to the green color of her feline eyes as well. He was wearing the same white button up dress shirt as all the other males, the top three buttons undone to expose some of his muscular chest and the shirt wasn't tucked into his pants either – though he did choose to wear a pair of dark black converse, that was an okay in her book.

He looked up at the female in front of him, why hadn't she asked his name yet? Or for his number, or tried a pick-up line, or fainted, or… or… something?! Instead she looked bored out of her mind. The boy inwardly smirked and thought, this girl is going to be different. He went back to business mode after that and looked at her straight in the eye, completely aware of their growing crowd of spectators. Apparently they thought she was going to be like every other girl and ask him out without even so much as a name from his lips.

He smirked a little, "Name?" She kept that bored look, also entirely aware of the crowd a ways behind her. "Haruno Sakura," Was all she said as raised an elegant eyebrow at him. Somehow that look made him feel funny and an almost inconspicuous blush crawled across his cheeks. Seeing the blush a corner of Sakura's mouth twitched upwards in an amused smirk. He quickened his pace a bit; he hurried to find the strange new girl's schedule and class information.

Turning around and leaning against the table quickly made work of her smoothie, chucking it into the trash can on the other side of the large stairway. The stares turned away but she could still sense the interest pointed at her as the white haired boy handed her the piece of paper with her school information on it. Nodding to the boy she turned to large grassy space in front of her to find a spot to sit in before school started. Finding a nice tree with a table underneath it she put her bag on the seat and sat on the table, taking her iPod out and turning it to Kizuna by Kamenashi Kazuya and leaned her head back and closed her eyes…

Only to open them again seconds later when she was abruptly strangled by a hug from her blue haired best friend. Gasps were heard as the new girl was found to be associated with the Akatsuki. People backed away in fear as the rest of the gang walked through the throng of students to reach the two females sitting on the bench in front of the tree.

A certain group of sophomores on the other side of the lawn watched with interested eyes, some were mixed with hate and others with jealousy – the new girl obviously didn't know her place. The sad part was that they knew Akatsuki ruled the school with an iron fist, and if she was associated with them in that kind of way – the outcome was bound to be negative. So they'll let it go for now and target her later, when there was no Akatsuki to defend her.

Konan had released her hold of the almost suffocated Taiwanese new girl. Deidara and Sasori sat on the grass and Sasori leaned against Sakura's legs, comfortable within her presence as she played with his hair. Deidara fell asleep as soon as he sat down and was snoring lightly. Kisame sat at the table and started talking to Itachi. Obito, whose nickname was Tobi, sat without his mask on and was doodling on the cover of his notebook – listening to whatever Itachi and Kisame were saying. Madara sat in between Konan and Pein, the first of which was talking to Sakura – who still had her iPod in – and Pein was doing some last minute homework. Hidan was laying flat on his back on the ground, his music blaring in his ears through the large headphones on his head.

They were completely aware that there were still stares as they got up to go inside because the bell had rung – obviously they didn't hear it, because if they did they would've gone in as well. Sasori and Deidara walked standing next to Sakura; the three had gotten quite close as well during the week Sakura had been in Tokyo. Comparing schedules the three realized they had lockers next to each other, and five classes together.

** Name: Haruno, Sakura **

**Address: 739 Orchid Field Lane **

** Age: 16 **

**Telephone: 774 – 310 - 8729 **

** Grade: 10th**

**Homeroom: Orochimaru **

** Locker Number: 313 **

**Locker Combination: 3 – 41 - 37 **

**_Schedule_**

_**Homeroom: Orochimaru – Room 308 **_

_** 1st Period: Math – Morino Ibiki – Room 213 **_

_** 2nd Period: **Art – Yuuhi Kurenai – Art Room _

_** 3rd Period: History – Sarutobi Asuma – Room 403 **_

** B Lunch **

_** 4th Period: **Chemistry – Orochimaru – Room 308 _

_** 5th Period: **English – Umino Iruka – Room 726 _

_** 6th Period: **Drama – Shiranui Genma – Music Room _

** Break Period **

_** 7th Period: **Gym – Mitarashi Anko – Gymnasium _

It was actually a pretty decent schedule in Sakura's opinion. Homeroom was with Orochimaru, but she didn't have any friends in that class – that was kind of a shame. She had math with Konan, Itachi, Sasori, Deidara, and Madara. She had art with Sasori and Deidara, which sounded like a lot of fun to her right now. She was sad that she didn't have anyone from Akatsuki in her History class, but that was fine she could handle herself well enough. Chemistry she had with Sasori, Deidara, Madara, Obito, and Itachi. English she had with Hidan and that was it, she was sad she didn't have any of her other friends in her most hated class but Hidan was nice enough. Drama she had with Itachi – oh she couldn't wait for that – Konan, Deidara, Sasori, and Pein. And gym was a class she had with everybody, that was bound to be an entertaining class.

Making it to her locker was bad enough, try having to run away from Deidara and Sasori's band of fan-girls. It seemed there was a killer intent in the air when she walked in the school holding both of their hands; it was all in a friendly nature… at least she hoped so.

She hugged Deidara and Sasori goodbye and told them that she'd see them later as she walked down the hallway to her homeroom class. Reaching room 308 she was ecstatic, she had thought that it was him – but you never know. When she caught sight of him and his glossy black hair she ran and jumped on his back – surprising everyone in the class. Wide eyes and whispers were heard throughout the class.

"Is Orochimaru-sensei a pedophile?"

"Is she one of his concubines?"

"She's too hot to be a concubine."

"I already hate her."

Sakura only ignored them and proceeded to hug her godfather. "Ootoji, I didn't know you were a teacher here! You could've told me first, I thought I was going to be all alone in this class because Saso-kun and Dei-chan had homerooms with other teachers…" there were more whispers after that comment.

"I didn't know Orochimaru-sensei had a niece! Did you?"

"No, I didn't even know he had a family!"

"Come on now guys. Aren't you being a bit mean?"

"No."

"What I want to know is - why did she call Sasori-kun and Deidara-kun 'Saso-kun' and 'Dei-chan'? She's got to be one hell of a whore if she calls them that."

"Everybody knows that Sasori-kun and Deidara-kun belong to us, right girls?"

Sakura was fed up with this, these people were so irritating! Turning to them she cleared her throat loud enough to the point where it could be heard amongst all the whispering. "I know I'm new here, and I don't know any of you. But I know that people usually have more manners than that. So would you do me a favor and, oh, I don't know, shut the hell up?"

The look she gave them was bored and pissed off at the same time; the look on everybody else's face was different. There were faces of awe, hatred, more interested ones than any others, and those of heated lust. The last one was because, if you were in the presence of a very attractive person – who was standing in a slightly see-through shirt with a short skirt, hip jutting out to the side and a fist on it with her bright emerald eyes in an icy glare, you'd be tempted too.

Three girls stood up in the back left side of the classroom, one was blond with blue eyes – like Deidara, but he was nice, this girl looked bitchy – the other was a red-head with red eyes and glasses, and the last one had purple hair and green eyes. Paired with the way they were wearing their uniforms…

Made them look slutty. The first one, the blond, put her hands on her hips and glared at Sakura. "And who the hell do you think you are? You're a new girl, you don't know anything." The other two laughed as Sakura kept her bored and pissed off expression while raising a single eyebrow at them and smirking… the guys got a nosebleed from that one too. "Oh, I know more than you think I know your royal pain in the asses." Sakura looked to her uncle who was smiling proudly. "Ootoji, I'm going to sit down now. The empty seat is in the back on the right, isn't it?" When he nodded she smiled a little and walked to the only empty seat left in the class. It was beside a red haired boy with green eyes and a tattoo that said 'love' in kanji on the left side of his forehead.

When the three girls saw where she was sitting they got even more pissed off at the new girl, she had a lot of arrogance, sitting next to Gaara-sama like that. Sakura noticed with amusement that they were fuming because of where she sat. For some odd reason, Sakura got a kick out of making people mad.

Taking out her laptop and a pair of earphones she turned it on, completely aware of the stares on her form. How the hell do you fit a laptop in a school bag? Was that thought running through everyone's minds; it was obviously a very small laptop so they found the answer rather quickly.

When the laptop was fully booted up and ready a picture of two people came up. One was obviously Sakura who looked about twelve; the other one was a boy with long brown hair and brown eyes who looked twelve as well. Turning on iTunes on her computer she started to play One Love by Arashi and turned on Word and a program that allowed her to make music and type down music notes. Opening a file named 'Niji' she started to work on it. By the notes and lyrics it was obviously a piano song, she had started it before she moved to Tokyo and she still was not finished. It was quite hard to compose music when you know you're being watched and plotted against by stupid people. Ah, troublesome.

He watched the new girl work, she hadn't even given her name yet, how was he supposed to talk to her now? He couldn't just go up to her and say 'Hey new girl, why are you sitting next to me?' now could he? It was quite odd though, watching her like this when he knows that she's completely aware of it and she doesn't care. Usually girls right now would be blushing if they were in her spot, but she acts as if she doesn't care. He inwardly smirked; she would be a fun one.

Sakura had noticed the red haired boy watching her since before she sat down. It was quite unnerving, having him openly stare like that. She ignored him and all the other stares from the people around her and continued her work. The one thing Sakura loves about homeroom is you don't do any real work and you can work on whatever you want. She had continued to do her work and ignore everybody else… that is, until she was approached by a brown haired girl with her hair in two twin buns on her head and the same chocolate colored eyes. She had a nasty sneer on her face and her arms were crossed across her chest.

"Who do you think you are? You can't just come in here acting like you own the place. Quit acting like a bitch." The sneer morphed into a smirk when she finished talking. I looked up at her for a minute with an eyebrow raised… again. After a couple of seconds just staring at each other – well, more like glaring – I reluctantly took out my earphones and saving my most recent project and stood up. I realized I was just a couple of centimeters taller than her and smirked back, I was suddenly grateful for my height – though I was still a head shorter than the majority of males.

"If anything, you're the one acting like a bitch." Was all Sakura said as she watched the girl fume, teeth grinding and eyes in a heated glare. The brown haired girls little friends came to back her up, but Sakura knew she didn't need any back up and if the situation got too out of hand Orochimaru would let her handle it. After all, she's untouchable – her grandmother owns and runs the school. "I'm only acting like this because you're here acting like you own the place! You're just a new girl, you don't know anything! And what's this about you hanging around with the Akatsuki, huh? Are you supposed to be their little whore or something? Don't make me laugh, like they'd ever spend time with someone like you." Sakura noticed that even though the girl was talking to only her, other people winced. It wasn't that bad in her opinion, actually it was quite weak. "For your information I do own the place." She paused then soaking in the confusion of the other students before continuing. "I know more than you think I do, as I've said before with the blond chick over there." She pointed to the blond girl with her chin before looking back at the girl in front of her. "The Akatsuki are my friends, and I am no whore – nor will I ever be. And they will never spend time with someone like you, ass-wipe. You're a disgrace to females." She packed her things then, leaving all the other students with wide eyes and gaping mouths.

** ~***~ **

Making her way to the art room she passed looks of awe and anger. It seemed her little 'show' with the brown haired girl - whose name escapes her at the moment - had finally gotten around the school. She walked with a sort of anticipation in her eyes, she couldn't wait to see the guys after her… well you wouldn't really call it eventful, but entertaining morning. Damn she would totally kill for a coffee right now.

Stepping into the art room she suddenly relaxed as the smell of oil paints and sculpting clay reached her nostrils and she breathed in deeply. This was home.

Taking a seat in the far back she dropped her bag and proceeded to the closet in the back to get a smock. Draping that over the back of her chair she walked over to the shelves in the back above the counters and took cans of paint and a box of brushes before taking a fresh canvas from the rack and placing it on the easel in front of her seat. She got there pretty early and as she was setting up other students started to walk in.

She recognized a few nameless people from her homeroom and ignored them when they looked at her and whispered to each other – well, it wasn't really whispering, it was more like talking… really loud.

"Did you see her this morning? How dare she do that to Tenten! I bet you Neji will come after her and kill her, we all know how he is."

"Yeah I know; did you hear what she said? God, she doesn't have to be such a bi- Excuse me." The two gossiping girls turned to look at Sakura – their conversation ultimately forgotten. One of them sneered, "What do you want?" Sakura punched the girl in the face so fast no one could see – it was hard enough to knock the girl flat on her ass – and then she was back in her seat again, as if nothing had happened. No one saw… except two very important people.

Gasping both girls turned to see Sakura sitting at her seat, brush on the easel gently tracing over her marks with black paint. There was a massive fist shaped bruise on the nameless girl's cheek that turned to address the teacher – Kurenai-sensei.

"Kurenai-sensei, did you see what the new girl did to Mao?! She punched her in the face! Look! Her bruise is huge! She might even have to go to the hospital for this." The other girl was spurting a whole shitload of nonsense and Kurenai-sensei looked skeptical, she hadn't seen or heard the new girl do any of the things Lei was saying. "Lei, stop trying to get people in trouble for things they didn't do. Haruno-san couldn't have done that, because she didn't even get out of her seat and you both were on the opposite side of the room. Now, please take Hasegawa-san to the nurses' office." The two girls left the classroom; they were so made steam would've been coming out of their ears had they been characters in a cartoon.

Sasori and Deidara looked at each other with a 'what-the-hell' face on and turned their gazes to the impassive Sakura. The latter was still tracing the intricate outlines of her artwork. Painting the background a dark black; the centerpiece itself was a magnificent red – the one you get when you mix the right amount of colors in the right order.

Sakura ignored them in favor of her art – that and her iPod was on. Xin Li You Shu was playing again, for some reason Sakura couldn't get over the fact that this song was amazing. Being out of Hsinchu for the second time in her life was really taking a toll on her. She missed speaking mandarin, and she missed her little flat, her school, and her friends.

Sasori and Deidara watched in confusion as Sakura's face contorted into a sort of accepting sadness. For some odd reason it hurt the boys very deeply, like that type of look wasn't ever supposed to cross her beautiful face… ever. "What's wrong Sakura-chan?" Deidara asked pulling out one of her earphones, she replaced the sad look with a smile as her music was set on full blast and was heard throughout the classroom as people got unusually quiet. The music was strange; it probably didn't register in everyone's mind that this was mandarin.

"I'm fine Dei-chan, don't worry about me. Sasori-kun, are you okay?" Sakura successfully evaded the topic as the other students lost interest and turned back around to do their work. Sasori looked up at Sakura, only to find her a couple of inches away from his face.

If you looked really closely, you could see a tinge of pink across the bridge of his nose. Holly-red eyes widened a fraction and the pink took a darker tint as she tilted her head to the left in a questioning manner. "Sasori-kun, are you sure you're alright?" Her eyes were seeing right through him and his blush turned darker again. _What's wrong with me?! I have a girlfriend - that's cheating on me with some guy in college_.

Deciding to leave the subject he answered the still waiting Sakura, who had backed up a bit and sat on Deidara's chair with the blond still working on his sculpture. "I'm fine; just get back to work Sakura." He smiled a small but sincere smile as Sakura narrowed her eyes at him but continued working.

Normally Sakura would've pried a bit more into a situation that involved her friends, but she could see the type of hurt Sasori was going through. She knows, because she experienced it herself – but that's a story for another time and another place.

The bell rang as soon as Sakura turned in her art assignment. The students who saw it were surprised she could do something so… so…_dark_.

The drawing itself was painted all black with a red substance dripping and falling into an already large puddle in the center. On the right side of the painting, there was a hand lying flat on the 'ground'. It was dead, that much was obvious.

Sasori and Deidara took the time to look at the picture before running off after their friend.

"Sakura-chan that was pretty."

"Thank you Deidara." She turned to look at Sasori, who shrunk back at the look on her face.

"Now Sasori, are you going to tell me what's on your mind? Or do I have to force it out of you?" She asked, turning on him fully. He looked like a trapped bunny with that look on his face.

Deidara also looked suspicious as he turned on him as well. Sasori visibly gulped and stared at them with wide eyes. It seemed those two could be scary when the situation calls for it.

Before he lost too much of his dignity, he stood straight and dusted invisible dust bunnies off of his uniform. "I'll tell you, I'm not ashamed to admit my girlfriend cheated on me."

Sakura nodded her head, while Deidara developed eyes of murder for the guy his girlfriend was cheating with. Sasori developed a questioning look as he saw Sakura's reaction to what he said.

"It's as I thought. Sasori, I know you're hurting more than this, don't hide it okay? If you need anything from me come and find me."

With that Sakura walked away, hiding the tears that threatened to fall with every step she took. Her mind was projecting images of the time they spent together and it made her want to throw up everything she had eaten in the past week. She missed him so much it was a physical pain.

_ Dammit, this was going to be harder than I thought. _

With that in mind she made her way to her next class, unaware of the eyes on her form.


End file.
